Gilbert Arenas Claims LeBron James and Luka Doncic Led Lakers Can Easily Beat Boston Celtics

Luka Doncic has yet to suit up for the Los Angeles Lakers, but Gilbert Arenas was still confident in his belief that the Slovenian superstar and LeBron James could easily handle the Boston Celtics in a potential series. While the Celtics are notorious for their three-point marksmanship from all five positions, Arenas believes the Celtics could struggle with this philosophy against the physical Lakers.

Arenas underlined how the Celtics would struggle to compete with their long-range strategy against a team with two stars who can drive to the hoop. More scoring opportunities near the basket means more free throw opportunities, which can’t be said for a team that primarily focuses on the three-ball.

Even with a completely new cast to work with, Arenas stated that the Lakers can run the same offense that the Mavericks ran for Doncic. Only this time, opponents won’t be able to double-team the five-time All-Star when LeBron is sharing the court with him.

The former Washington Wizard is confident that the pair’s ability to play off each other will elevate Los Angeles to contention status.

With less defensive focus on each of them, Arenas believes the Lakers will be able to run a more free-flowing offense that allows both Doncic and James to get plenty of easy buckets. Offense may not be a problem for the new-look Lakers, but as the co-hosts of Gil’s Arena underlined, Los Angeles could struggle mightily on the defensive end.

The Luka Doncic trade opens up a new role for LeBron James

For the first time in his career, LeBron James won’t be the most ball-dominant player on his team. Often tasked with heavy scoring and playmaking duties, much of the offensive weight will be lifted off LBJ’s shoulders with Doncic in town. The 25-year-old is better equipped to lead an offense at this stage of his career, which will allow James to operate more off the ball.

The Lakers’ offense will undoubtedly look much different with the addition of Doncic, but the jury is still out on whether that will make the team more successful. The franchise was able to bolster their frontcourt by adding Hornets’ center Mark Williams at the trade deadline, but the deal was rescinded on Saturday, recreating the void that Anthony Davis’ departure created.

Williams isn’t near the defender that Davis is, but he is a more than serviceable interior scorer and lob threat. For now, the Lakers will be stuck with Jaxson Hayes as their starting center, which could create issues on both sides of the ball for the foreseeable future. Los Angeles will now have to get creative in their quest for a serviceable starting big man.